


The Squadron

by DChan87



Category: Original Work, Power Rangers, Tokusatsu
Genre: Action, Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Bechdel Test Pass, Bisexual Female Character, Chicago (City), Clarke's Third Law, College, College Hockey, Elf/Human Relationship(s), Elves, Elves are Dicks, F/F, F/M, Fantasy, Gen, Girl Power, Heterosexual Character, Lampshade Hanging, Magical Girls, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Original Universe, Science Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Snark, Superheroes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-12
Updated: 2015-07-13
Packaged: 2018-04-08 21:59:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4322298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DChan87/pseuds/DChan87
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Long ago, the two species lived in harmony. Then, everything changed. Now the two species are always on the brink of conflict, but the other is none the wiser. Only a select group of special individuals can save the two species and the world from catastrophe. Power Rangers/Tokusatsu-inspired superhero piece</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Take-Off, Part 1

_In the distant past, the two species lived in harmony and peace. But that changed all to quickly. One species hid themselves away while the other dominated the Earth. Now the two species are always on the brink of conflict… and one species is completely unaware of it. This conflict bodes ill for all species on Earth, and the only ones capable of stopping it are the unaware species themselves… or at least a rowdy, defiant, special group of them, that is._

:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:

Hitomi Miyazawa had never been to Chicago.

She'd spent almost her entire life in Kyoto, only a leaving a few times to go on vacation with her family or accompanying her father and/or brother on business trips. This was the first time she'd ever had a chance to see a major world city on her own, and it was the best thing ever.

Chicago's hearty, blue-collar past and its cosmopolitan present were reflected in its buildings. From the ornate Art Deco, to the simplicity of the Modern Era, to the combination of both in Postmodern, Chicago was an amazing jungle of steel, glass and stone on the southwest shores of an inland sea. There was something special about this city, and Hitomi couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Her brother Daisuke, however, was barely even interested. He just kept his eyes downcast and focused on a piece of paper in his lap. He'd been to Chicago before, and apparently wasn't impressed the first, second or third times he came. Or maybe he was just so used to it that it lose its luster to him. Maybe that was it.

"Why aren't you looking, Brother?" the girl asked.

"Looking at what?"

"The city!"

"Because I have to look at something else," he replied. Hitomi sighed and pouted, sitting back in the seat.

Their car was driving down the famous Lake Shore Drive, Chicago's very own front lawn. They were still on the North Side, but on their way to the NearWest Side, where they were both going to start classes at Illinois State University-Chicago, a major research university with campuses in the Near West Side, Bronzeville and Lincoln Park.

Needless to say, Hitomi was excited. She never expected to attend university anywhere other than Japan, and this was a big opportunity for her. She was so excited when she received the acceptance letter, even though her grandmother Sakura was less than impressed. Her mom was happy, though. And being from such a prestigious family as the Miyazawas, Hitomi could get in anywhere she wanted.

But Harvard or Oxford were not for her.

Her mouth and eyes widened as they passed by the steel canyon of downtown Chicago. "Well, to be fair, it is easier to get around here," Daisuke said while Hitomi ignored him.

They drove past the usual Chicago landmarks—Hancock Center, Tribune Tower, the Sears Tower—until they were past them and on the Near West Side, near Greektown now. They were a good distance from the more violent neighborhood, which their mother was concerned about when they told her they were going to ISUC for college. But because Near West Side is a middle-class neighborhood with a low crime rate, Himeno felt a lot better about letting them go.

So when they left, she told the both of them to treat this like they would an adventure. Life itself is an adventure, after all.

It was mid-August, but Hitomi saw people wearing red, long-sleeved sweaters with a Native American head on them. "What are those?" she asked.

"Those are Chicago Blackhawks jerseys," said Daisuke, "They play a sport called 'ice hockey' and they are very popular here."

"Oh, okay!" she said, "… What's ice hockey?"

"It is a game, played on ice where several players try to get a black rubber disk into a goal," said Daisuke, "Other than that, I know very little about it myself."

Hitomi groaned and sat back against the seat. "You're no help," she said.

They did not speak to each other for the rest of the ride to the campus. It wasn't until she saw the towers on campus that she realized they were close.

The car parked on W Harrison St, just south of Interstate 290. The campus itself spread from west from Halsted Street to Racine and south from the Interstate to Taylor St and W 14th Pl. Hitomi's dormitory was in Ogden Hall. It was one of the towers that was seen from the distance, even though it was 15 stories tall, and not the massive skyscrapers like the ones she saw downtown.

Hitomi stepped out of the car and looked around. She was young, only 18 years old, but she was very pretty. Her complexion was light, a symbol of her wealthy upbringing, but also made her resemble a J-Pop singer. Her hair was black, but had brown highlights in it, and went down to her shoulder. She was petite, but don't let that fool you; she was a gymnast and had the build for it.

Daisuke was taller than her, but had a slightly darker complexion. His black hair was shorter, and well-groomed, and his build, hidden by the suit he wore, was more athletic. Just because he was rich did not mean he was going to sit around all day!

The sun was shining on a perfectly cloudless August day, and Hitomi felt excited for her first time attending University in America.

"We will get your things unpacked," said their bodyguard, Toji-san.

"Thank you, Toji-san," said Daisuke. "Hitomi, look over there." He pointed into the park at the rink in the middle of it. Several figures were moving about like insects chasing after something.

"What is that?" she asked.

"I am not sure," he said, "But we can go and look."

They crossed the street and onto the parkitself to get a closer look. The figures there were playing a game and moving very fast. Was this the ice hockey Daisuke told her about? No, they were using inline skates, not on ice. "Who are they?" Daisuke asked the person standing at the edge of the rink.

"Members of the ice hockey team," he replied, "They're just getting in some pre-season and pre-semester playing in."

"Oh," said Hitomi, "I did not know the school had this game."

"One of two teams in the entire state," the man laughed, "The other is our hated rival Malachy University out in Mt. Greenwood. Which is actually where our star player is from."

The man pointed at a young man around Daisuke's age skating down the left side. He did not look very big, but the way he gripped his stick showed he knew what he was doing, to say the least. The young man took the ball and did some things with his stick while weaving through his opponents, his Blackhawks jersey fluttering in the wind he created, while part of his brown hair stuck out from under the helmet he was wearing.

"Incredible!" Daisuke said as the young man made several more moves with the stick and ball before moving in on the goaltender—even they knew what his position was—and effortlessly nudge the ball in.

"BOOOM!" the young man bellowed as he skated around, pumping his fist and laughing like a mad man.

"He is lively," said Daisuke.

"They say he's descended from Cú Chulainn," said the man, causing the siblings to look at him in confusion. "Sorry, he's a legendary figure in Irish mythology, who was…  _spirited_ , to say the least."

"May I talk to him?" Daisuke asked.

"Sure! YOU THERE! O'CALLAHAN! No, SEAN! SOMEONE WANTS TO TALK TO YOU!" The young man looked up and skated over to the siblings.

"What's up?" he asked, removing his helmet and shaking out his thick, medium-length brown hair.

"Are you Sean O'Callahan?"

"Who the fuck do you think I am?" he asked. He was youthful alright, and definitely Irish, even if his face was slender. His build was athletic, but not terribly big and Daisuke suspected he weighed less than 190 lbs. His brown eyes looked around, and it was clear he was confused.

"Apologies," said Daisuke, "My name is Daisuke Miyazawa."

"Uh-huh, good for you," said Sean, "Whaddaya want?"

"You do not know who I am, do you?"

"Should I care?"

"In a way, yes," said Daisuke. "I want you to do something for me."

"Will it violate my scholarship?" Sean asked, "Stupid NCAA."

"No, it will not," Daisuke replied, "It is a product testing in our office building downtown that I need you to come to."

"Why?"

"You will see," Daisuke replied, handing something to him. Sean looked at the card, raised his eyebrows and shrugged.

"Miyazawa, huh?" he asked, "Think I interned with them a couple years ago."

"So are you going to come?" Daisuke asked.

"Why the fuck not?" he asked. He pulled his helmet back on and skated back into place.

"Brother, what was that?" Hitomi asked.

"You will find out tomorrow," said Daisuke. "Come, let us tour the campus."

"Okay," Hitomi said, unable to look away from the young man they just met.

The campus was large and had a mixed appearance. The western half of the campus, the Old Campus, had a gothic and Art Deco style to it, indicative of the early years of the University. It was also right next to the ISU medical school, home to the largest medical school in the country. Because there is already an Illinois State University in Bloomington-Normal, ISUC had to take its name that way. But unlike ISU Normal, which is ostensibly the flagship campus of the Illinois State University System, ISUC was bigger and considered a "Major" university. Obviously, there's a bit of tension between the Chicago school and the Normal school.

The eastern part of campus was more modern, built after the 1960s. This part more resembled a traditional college campus, with sidewalks twisting every which way, a large stereotypical lecture hall and confusion classroom buildings that belonged at a place like the University of Illinois, as well as one of the aforementioned tall buildings. But the University itself had the basic minimum of buildings for their students.

That's why they had other campuses in Bronzeville and Lincoln Park.

Hitomi was so distracted by the spaciousness of the East Campus (despite the fact that it was crammed into a couple city blocks) that she did not notice someone coming towards her until she bumped into them.

"Oh, that's just perfect!" the person said in an unmistakable Irish accent.

"Here, let me help," Daisuke said as he rushed to help the young man.

He looked older than the both of them, and he was dressed in a business casual way. They could already tell he was bigger than both of them. But the way he carried himself was dignified and academic. He was definitely a teacher. He was also unmistakably Irish, but had shorter dark-blonde hair and brown eyes. He stood, brushing off his shirt, tie and bag. "Much appreciated," he said. "What's your name?"

"Daisuke Miyazawa," he replied, "And this is my sister Hitomi."

"Oh, nice to meet you," said the older man, "I'm Kevin O'Donnell. I'm one of the Teaching Assistants here. I teach English literature."

"That is interesting," said Daisuke. "By the way, do you mind if I give you something as an apology?"

"What do you mean?" Kevin asked.

"Here, take this," said Daisuke. "Do you mind coming downtown for a product testing?"

"Sure," said Kevin, "I don't have anything to do, anyway."

"Where are you from, by the way?" Hitomi asked.

"Dublin," said Kevin, "And in case you're wondering, this patch here is from University College Dublin." He pointed at a blue-colored patch on his bag that Hitomi had been looking at. "And this is Irish Defense Forces."

"You're a soldier?" Daisuke asked.

"In a way," said Kevin. "I have to go. Sorry!" The Irishman ran off, leaving Hitomi confused and Daisuke not.

"Fair enough," said Daisuke. "Come, let us move you in."

They spend the next two hours moving Hitomi in to her dorm room. After getting their room key, they picked Hitomi's bed and once that was done, moved her things in while her roommate, an American girl, watched with interest. She had no idea who either one of them was.

When they finished, Hitomi had the room to herself. But her new roommate was still a little uncomfortable. So Hitomi did what she could do. She smiled sweetly and held her hand out for the new roommate to shake. " _Konnichiwa_ ," she said, " _Watashi was Miyazawa Hitomi desu_. I am Japanese, from the city of Kyoto."

"Oh? Are you from Japan?" her roommate asked. Hitomi nodded. "Sorry. I'm Karen, from Grayslake."

"Nice to meet you, Karen," said Hitomi. "What are you studying?"

"Uh, engineering," said Karen. "You?"

"Business," Hitomi replied.

"Oh," said Karen, "I hear we have an excellent business school here."

"That's why I came here," said Hitomi. "I'll be able to run my family's business better."

"Oh, that's cool," said Karen, "Does your family own a small business?"

"Actually, no," said Hitomi, "The Miyazawa Group is one of the wealthiest retail chains in the world and we make some of the best tech products you'll ever—what's wrong?"

To Hitomi, nothing was wrong. But Karen was so stunned she looked like an anime character in a way. The redhead grabbed her forehead and collapsed onto the bed while Hitomi screamed. "You're… rich!" Karen quivered.

"Um, yes," Hitomi said, "Do you want to know about—"

"No thanks," said Karen.

"Um, do you like anime?" Hitomi asked.

Karen's shock subsided. She sat up and said, "Yeah, why?"

"I have some anime DVDs with me!" Hitomi said.

"They don't have any subtitles, do they?" Karen asked.

"… No, sorry."

Karen sighed. "Thanks, anyways."

"I wonder how Daisuke's doing," Hitomi said as she caught sight of a girl passing by her door.

Daisuke had moved into the International House, a residence hall for non-freshman international students. For the most part, he was the only Japanese student on his floor, but he could hear Japanese while sitting in one of the common rooms.

He sat in one, reading a book when he heard someone coming up behind him. " _OI! Necesito mi telenovelas!_ " A feminine voice declared. Someone passed in front of him and turned on the television, switching it to Telemundo. "Ah, these Mexican  _novelas_  are trash, but something's better than nothing."

"What?" Daisuke asked.

The woman, who was wearing a Brazilian national football team shirt, turned around and gave Daisuke a look of disapproval. "Soap operas," she said. "Forget it." She sighed.

Daisuke watched as the woman fluffed her long, dark-brown hair and light-light-brown complexion. He was not interested in her in the romantic sense, but he did not deny that she was beautiful to anyone. Her brown eyes looked at him, and, she flexed her toned arms, almost like Michelle Obama's. "What are you looking at?" she asked.

"Nothing," Daisuke replied as he went back to his book. "Go ahead and watch your ridiculous shows.

The woman scoffed. "Who do you think you are?" she asked.

"Daisuke Miyazawa," he replied.

"Evidently, you're not familiar with sarcasm," she replied, "But since you already introduced yourself, let me do the same. I'm Maria Gabriela Aparicio Rodriguez, from Caracas, Venezuela."

"Maria Rodriguez?" he asked.

"Maria Aparicio!" she snapped. " _AY DIOS MIO_ , you're rude! Good luck getting a date!"

"Why should I concern myself with someone as rude as you?" he asked.

"Forget it," he replied.

"What's that you've got there?" she asked.

"I was going to give you this," he said, "But you were rude to me."

"What are you saying?" she asked.

"Nothing—OI!"

He tried to stop her when she reached and grabbed the card he was holding. "A product testing?" she asked, "For what?"

"That is for you to find out," he replied.

"Sounds important," said Maria. "Can I come?"

"What are you willing to pay?" he asked.

"That's extortion," she replied, "And it's something too many men have tried on me."

"What?"

"I am not going out with scum like you," she said, "But I want to try this new product."

"Fair enough," said Daisuke.

:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:

Sean lay on his bed, tossing a puck in the air while staring at the product testing invite he'd gotten from that rich boy earlier. Most of his thoughts on the subject were simple curiosity. Why was he chosen? Well, he'd heard his cousin telling him that he was randomly picked to take part in a movie focus group (although it was probably a bit more complex than that). Of course, the suspected that the internship he did a couple years ago may have been involved.

The invitation said something about new technology. Whatever the fuck that meant, he had no idea. It could be a new MP3 player or a new phone (he liked his iPhone already, thankyouverymuch).

He was distracted when he heard the breaking news music coming from his TV, coming from the WGN News. He sat up, disturbing his poor beagle/corgi mix named Payton as he listened to a report about an attack up near the Illinois-Wisconsin border. Apparently the attackers used some kind of weapon nobody had before.

"This is the fifth attack with similar descriptions," the reporter said.

Sean sighed and flopped back on the bed. Being a journalism student, he felt WGN could do a bit of a better job reporting that.

"HEY!" He bolted up on his bed as his apartment roommate burst in. "Oops, sorry. Jimmy said we're invited to a party hosted by Coach Little," said his roommate, Ritchie Metoxen of Green Bay, Wisconsin and a young man of full Native American ancestry.

"Sounds good," Sean said as he sat up, "What time?"

"Seven," Ritchie replied. "What's that in your hand?"

"Invite to some product testing," said Sean.

"Are you allowed to do that?" Ritchie asked.

"I checked and found out, yes, I can," Sean replied, "Just so long as I don't endorse it."

"Sure," said Ritchie, "But don't blame me if you get in trouble."

"Yeah, I'll bet you'd do the opposite," Sean replied.

:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:

End chapter


	2. Take-Off, part 2

The next morning, Sean got up and went to the ISUC-Halsted L station to catch a train downtown. But he was about 10 minutes early, so he leaned against a lamp post and pulled out his iPhone just to mess around on for a few minutes.

He sighed and found another story about an attack, this time in Waukegan. The way the attack unfolded was the same as the last five: The attackers came out of nowhere, using weapons that were like something out of a sci-fi movie or a comic book before disappearing, leaving a mess and several people dead or injured. It was strange, no doubt. The cops and feds were baffled, and offered no possible explanation for what was going on.

And he didn't, either.

When he looked up from his phone, he saw someone coming up the steps towards him. It was a girl, and  _HOLY GRETZKY_ , she was gorgeous!

He stood up stiffly and put his phone back in his pocket while the woman walked up to him. "Are you waiting for the train?" she asked.

"Yeah!" he replied. "Are you?"

" _Si_ ," she replied.

"Oh, okay," he said, clearing his throat. The Dude in him wanted to say some stupid pick-up line or shit like that. The Smart Person, reinforced by advice from his parents and experience, told him to just ask her who she was. In the end, Intelligence won out. "So, um… what's your name?"

She turned to him and said, " _Me llamo_  Maria Gabriela Aparicio Rodriguez,  _y soy_   _de_  Caracas."

"Uhhh… okaaayyy…"

"Maria Aparicio," she said, "I'm from Venezuela."

"Aparicio… OH! I KNOW!"

"What?"

"Do you know who Luis Aparicio is?"

"Yeah, I know who he is," she said, "Why?"

"He's an old-timey baseball player," said Sean, "He used to play for the Sox back in the 50s! Are you related to him?"

"No," she replied, "But… you know your baseball?"

"Yeah, I do," he said with a laugh. "It comes with being from this city."

"I hope you're not bragging," she said derisively.

He groaned. Damn, she was on to him. He hung his head and leaned back against the lamp post. He may be handsome himself, but she was out of his league. But…

"Do you know who I am?"

"Should I?"

He chuckled and brought his hand to his chin. "Hehe, I play for the hockey team," he said, "The name's Sean O'Callahan. I'm kind of a big deal around here."

"In your head," she replied. "I don't watch hockey."

"Well you're missing out on a lot," said Sean. "So what're you here for? Taking the train downtown?"

"Yeah," she replied, pulling something out of her pocket, "I got invited to some 'product testing' at the Miyazawa building downtown. Although, I'm not sure where it is."

"I know," he said, "I interned with Miyazawa a couple years ago. Speaking of which, I got invited to the same thing." He pulled out the invitation and showed it to her.

"Oh, what do you know?" she asked, "And I was a Miyazawa intern, too."

"Then why did you need help?" he asked.

"Because I interned in Rio," she said, "And don't ask why it was in Rio."

Sean held his hands up. "Sorry, sorry, sorry," he said, "Did you go to the beach every day?"

He should've kept his mouth shut, and she had permission to punch him. But he effortlessly blocked the punch, twisted her arm and threw a counter punch. She effortlessly blocked  _his_. "You're good," he said.

"So are you," she replied. They let go of their arms. Sean leaned back against the lamp post and crossed his arms.

"So what'd you do?" he asked.

"Brazilian jiu-jitsu," she replied, "I've been practicing it since I was 8. You?"

"Karate, MMA and my buddy makes me do pro-style wrestling when we go to the gym," said Sean, "He wipes the floor with me each time we wrestle, but I did Karate for 9 years and MMA on my free time ever since."

"So you think you're good?"

"I know I'm good."

"You ARE arrogant," she said, "I HATE arrogance."

"Then why do I smell it coming off of you?"

She turned to respond, but stayed silent. "Touche," she said.

The conversation ended when the train's horn blared. Sean shrugged.

The two sat next to each other on the train. They continued their conversation there. "So… you also interned with Miyazawa?" he asked.

"Si," she replied.

"Huh," he said, "I didn't know we had so much in common."

"Quit trying to get at me," she said. "Yes, I interned with Miyazawa in their Rio offices a couple years ago."

"What kind of internship was it?" he asked.

"Marketing. What about yours?"

"Marketing too," he said, looking out at the passing city and then back to her. "Is that what you're majoring in?"

"No," she replied, "I'm majoring in teaching. What about you?"

"Journalism," he replied, "That way if I don't make the NHL, I could always become a hockey pundit."

"Who do you think you are?"

"Well, a lot of people compare me to Patri—"

"Don't know who he is!" she said.

"You know, you can at least  _try_  to be nice enough to be a friend," he said.

"That I can do," she said.

The train soon pulled into the Monroe Street Blue Line station. They emerged onto S Dearborn St in front of the Bank of America Theater and to a hot late-August Sunday. Sean checked on his iPhone for the Miyazawa building and pointed to the west. "It's this way," he said, "Shouldn't be too hard to find."

It took about 10 minutes to walk to the Miyazawa building, which was located near City Hall on LaSalle Street. Sean pointed out the Chicago Board of Trade Building, where a famous scene in _The Dark Knight_  took place.

The Miyazawa Building itself was the tallest and building on LaSalle, but nowhere near the height of the Sears (not Willis!) Tower. In fact, it was probably the height of the Tribune Tower, instead. It occupied an older building, but it had significant renovations and upgrades to make it look more modern.

The lobby, however, looked very much the same as it had been when it was built in the 1930s as an effort to preserve its landmark status. But flatscreens and other tech bits were scattered around, showing a few Miyazawa commercials. Most of them depicted a happy Japanese family using their products or shopping at their overpriced department stores.

And there was also somebody waiting there, too.

"Kevin!" Sean said happily, "What's up, man?"

"Sean!" Kevin said as he stood up to shake Sean's hand. "I take it you're here for the same reason as I am?"

"Must be some kind of focus group," said Sean.

"Who's this?" Maria asked.

"Oh, sorry, this is my friend Kevin O'Donnell," said Sean. "His dad and my dad were friends growing up in Dublin, even after my dad moved to Chicago."

"So who's your friend?" Kevin asked, giving Sean a sly smile.

"Oh, uh, her?" he asked. "Her name's Maria."

"Maria Gabriela Aparicio Rodriguez," she said. "I'm from Caracas."

"Venezuela, correct?"

"Correct."

"Just checking," said Kevin.

"She also interned with Miyazawa," said Sean. "Must be why they picked us."

"He did, too?" Maria asked.

"Yep!"

They were interrupted when they heard footsteps coming their way. A Japanese woman, probably in her 30s, walked up to them and bowed. " _Ohayo gozaimasu_ ," she said. " _Watashi wa Kido Jun desu_. I would like to welcome you to the Miyazawa United States headquarters. Please, follow me. Mr. Miyazawa is waiting for you."

The trio looked at each other. Sean shrugged and went first. "So are we going to be some kinda focus group or something?" he asked.

"You could say that," said Jun.

The three followed Jun through security and to the main elevators. She pressed a button as they entered and the door closed before it began to rise up to the top floor, where their meeting would take place. "So all of you interned for Miyazawa, correct?" she asked, not out of ignorance, but for confirmation.

"Yeah," said Sean. "Apparently. I interned in the marketing department here."

"Ah, so you are familiar with the building itself?" Jun asked.

"Yep!"

"Have you been to the top floor?"

Sean thought for a minute. "No, can't say I have," he said. "Isn't that where the boss works?"

"You'll see," she said.

The elevator stopped a few seconds later and Jun led them out of the elevator. This floor was very much the old building, what with the polished granite columns here and there. Jun led them down the hall and into a room that looked like it was a board room, with several screens set up in the table. "Please, sit wherever you want," she said. "Your host will be here shortly."

"Sounds good!" Sean said as he plopped into the comfiest looking chair and sat back like he was a tycoon. "Caviar, please!"

"We do not have caviar," said Jun, "But I will gladly bring you some refreshments."

"… Fine, coffee with cream and sugar," said Sean.

"Same here," Maria added.

"Tea, please," said Kevin, "With cream and sugar, as well."

Jun smiled and nodded at Sean and Maria's request, but seemed a little perplexed at Kevin's. Still, she bowed and left the room to get their refreshments.

She returned several minutes later with their drinks while Kevin told a funny story about a Rolling Stones song and his old friend from Dublin. "… And that's how I came to love 'Satisfaction'," he said, prompting Sean and Maria to laugh.

"Your host will be here soon," said Jun. "Also, we have a program we would like you to test for us. You can use those computer screens in the desk in front of you."

"What is it?" Sean asked.

"We are launching a new superhero toy line," said Jun. "Perhaps if you helped us design some ideas."

"Eh, why not?" Sean asked. "But, these 'toys'… what are they for?"

"I will be back soon," she said, subtly angrily.

"Seriously, why would you have 20-somethings design toys?" Sean asked.

"Don't they already do that?" Maria replied.

"Have you ever heard of a focus group of twenty-somethings designing toys?" Kevin asked.

"No," Maria replied. "Look, let's just do this, we've got nothing better to do, anyway."

"Yeah, sure," said Sean. "Alright, let's see what we've got."

:-:-:-:-:-:-:

"How long have they been waiting for me, Jun?" Daisuke asked while he put his suit jacket on.

"It has been ten minutes since I brought them their refreshments, Miyazawa-sama," said Jun.

"They should have designed their suits by now," said Daisuke. "Tell them I will be with them shortly."

"Yes, sir," she said as she left.

Daisuke finished putting his suit on and waited until he knew Jun was well out of sight. So now it was time for him to make his appearance. He left his uncle's office and strolled down the hall as Jun came walking back towards him. She bowed and he nodded before he entered the conference room where the three westerners were busy with their designs.

" _Ohayo gozaimasu_ ,  _hajimeshite_ " he said when he came to the front of the room. " _Ore wa Miyazawa Daisuke desu_."

The three guests all looked at each other as if he's spoken Korean. "My apologies," he said. "My name is Daisuke Miyazawa, although I met you all yesterday at the ISUC campus."

"Oh, I thought you looked familiar!" said Sean.

"Yes, well, if I may continue," he said, "I came in to check on your superhero designs."

"But I'm not done yet!" said Maria.

"I am!" said Sean.

"FUCK!"

"Do not worry," said Daisuke. "You will still be able to work on it while we look these over."

"By the way, why did you have three twenty-somethings design superhero toys?" Sean asked, "Isn't that what kid focus groups are for?"

"May I PLEASE begin?" Daisuke asked through grit teeth. Sean raised his hands up and Daisuke rolled his eyes. "Now then, let us see what Mr. O'Callahan has made."

The lights dimmed and the screen at the front of the room turned on. Immediately, Sean's designs popped up on screen. It was a sleek, Power Rangers/Kamen Rider-like suit, but in VERY familiar colors.

Instantly, Kevin snickered and tried to keep himself from laughing out loud. Sean's suit was in the same colors/design as the Blackhawks and ISUC's hockey team. "Are you really THAT uncreative!?" Kevin laughed.

Maria quickly went to her screen and started working furiously.

"This is… unique," said Daisuke. "But why would you have a black helmet if your color is red?"

"Shut up," said Sean.

"The Blackhawk, huh?" Kevin asked. "Of course."

"And you have a sword, too," said Daisuke. "To your credit, it looks like an original design, what with the winged crossguard. And the chest symbol is a hawk, which takes away any risk of getting sued."

Sean wasn't sure if they were mocking him or not.

"How about we see Kevin's?" Daisuke asked.

Kevin's design flashed on screen. It was more… downplayed, just a blue torso, helmet and boots, and white slacks and gloves. "Soldier Blue," said Daisuke. "Very unassuming. And a rifle?"

"Irish Defense Forces," Kevin replied. "I know how to use a rifle."

"Ah, that is why," said Daisuke. "I suppose I should move on to Aparicio, unless she is not finished."

"I am now!" she said.

"Oh, this is gonna be—WHAT THE FUCK!?"

Maria's suit was more of a standard, Power Rangers/Kamen Rider-ish design, but made with the Brazilian national soccer team in mind—yellow torso and helmet with green highlights, blue skirt and leggings, and white gloves and Sailor Moon boots (of the same white color) with green highlights, as well. "Canaria," said Daisuke. "That is interesting."

"Are you kidding me!?" Sean shouted, "You can't design a suit after the Brazilian soccer team!"

"Says the  _idiota_  who designed his after a hockey team!" she replied.

"She's got you there," said Kevin.

Sean groaned while Daisuke cleared his throat. "Now then, how would you feel if I asked all of you to wear them?"

"I'd feel you need to be thrown in the loony bin," said Sean.

"I expected that," said Daisuke. "But please, let me explain. We still have another 20 minutes before we are scheduled to end this focus group."

Daisuke stepped to the laptop at the podium and fiddled around with it. A picture appeared on screen. It was of downtown Waukegan amidst the attack that happened earlier. "How did you get that?" Sean asked.

"I have my ways," said Miyazawa. "I am sure you have been hearing about the strange attacks occurring in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and now Illinois. What if I told you they were all perpetrated by the same group?"

"Wouldn't surprise me," said Kevin.

"Of course not," said Daisuke. "What if I told you—"

"Just say it and stop quoting  _The Matrix_!" Sean interrupted.

"Elves are behind this," said Daisuke.

The guests stayed silent and looked at each other. Several moments of this awkward silence passed until all three of them broke into loud, uproarious and mocking laughter. Daisuke knew this would be harder than expected, and rolled his eyes while waiting for them to finish.

"ELVES!?" Sean laughed. "Isn't it a little early? Don't they have to be at the North Pole!?"

"So are these elves Noldor or Sindaran from the Greenwood?" Kevin asked.

Sean and Maria both gave him a confused look. "Sorry. Tolkien reference."

"No, no and no," said Daisuke. "Please, let me explain. These elves are very much like the ones O'Donnell was talking about. But they are mortal, have technology far more advanced than we have. And they may have magic."

"Hocus pocus," Sean quipped.

"There is not much else I know about them," said Daisuke. "I must admit, the intelligence on them is not up to par."

"Intelligence?" Kevin asked. "He sounds like he's in the… what's the name of the Japanese intelligence agency?"

"Naicho," said Daisuke. "But my intelligence is better than theirs."

"Whatever," said Sean.

"And how does this concern us?" Maria asked. "Oh wait, I think I've figured it out; you want us to wear those suits!"

"Of course," said Miyazawa.

"Okay, can we go now?" Sean asked.

"No."

"Are you going to turn this into a hostage situation?" Sean asked.

"Of course not," said Daisuke.

"Well that's a relief," said Sean. "BYE!"

Sean stood up to leave when Daisuke changed the slide on the screen. Sean stopped in his tracks.

It was a video of the attack in Waukegan. The camera was shaky, but genuinely, not like a shaky-cam movie. Loud, static-y explosions ripped every now and then, punctuating the carnage. In the little bits of iPhone footage, they could see the assailants. In a way, they were like suits of armor. But their motion was robotic and jerky.

Once Daisuke stabilized the image, a clearer shot came about. The enemies  _were_  suits of armor, and they were running amok, shooting the place up like it was a gun range.

The video ended and Miyazawa turned to them. "I was prepared for your rejection," he said.

"So what now?" Kevin asked.

"It is still your choice," Miyazawa replied. "If you do not want to do it, I cannot keep you here. If you do, then I have your transformation devices here." He tapped on the table. It opened up and three metallic wrist pieces popped up from the middle of the table.

"Um, I'm not sure," said Sean.

"I am not forcing you to take them," said Miyazawa. "If you do not want to take them, you are free to leave. Because you have already given me your addresses, I will send you the check either way."

"I didn't know we were getting paid," said Sean. "Whatever. Come on Kev, let's get the hell out of here."

"I'll take one," Maria said. Although Daisuke believed she was simply doing it to humor him.

:-:-:-: The Squadron :-:-:-:

"Is your force in place?"

"It is, Commander."

"Then may God be with you on your Crusade."

:-:-:-: The Squadron :-:-:-:

"Jesus Christ, can you believe that?" Sean huffed. "Superheroes."

"I thought you'd be excited," said Kevin.

"I'm not stupid," Sean replied. "You think I'd actually believe someone when they tell me I can be a superhero?"

"What if you were in a movie?" Kevin asked.

"The same thing," Sean replied. "I don't think I'm that good an actor."

"And I take it Aparicio took the device just to humor him," said Kevin.

" _Si_ ," she replied.

"You two are not very nice," said Kevin. "Maybe you should marry each other."

"As if!" Sean replied.

"Fuck him!" Maria replied. Kevin rolled his eyes, failing to tell them that's how his parents met and now they were happily married.

Oh, well. As The Supremes once said, you can't hurry love.

The walk back to Monroe wasn't as long as the walk from, aside from stopping for more red lights, which seemed to be specifically targeting them. It prompted Sean to mention something about how street lights hate his guts. They'd reached Daley Plaza when Maria noticed something. Sean and Kevin were about to walk past, but stopped when they saw Maria. "What are you looking at?" Sean asked.

"What's that over there?" Maria asked, pointing to the south.

"It's Daley Plaza," said Sean. "You know, where the Picasso is?"

"Those don't look like Picasso," she replied, prompting Sean to look as well.

There was some kind of activity over by the Plaza. Sean found himself being drawn in that direction, before running down Michigan Ave with Maria right behind and Kevin trying to get them to stop. "HEY, WAIT!" He called out.

The crowd had gathered around several figures that kinda looked like sleek, shiny (well, actually dulled so the sunlight wouldn't blind anyone) suits of armor that walked and moved robotically. They walked around several people, holding them at… staff point, with a blue gem at the base of the blade, glowing menacingly.

And in the middle of them was a monster. A cyborg, with the body of a burly human and the head of a rhinoceros. A Rhinotaur, if you will. The Rhinotaur prowled and sauntered around, glaring at the gathered crowd near the Art Institute. It was like a stand-off in some old cowboy movie, where the bad guy holds the town hostage.

If the hostages knew what was going on, that is.

It was clear on the Rhinotaur's face that it was NOT happy. It snarled, huffed and snorted at the crowd. Some people had taken out their phones and were taking pictures of the monster like it was a Disney World attraction. Needless to say, this did not go over well with the Rhinotaur.

"You stupid monkeys!" it shouted. He raised his arm and a missile popped out of the mechanical forearm. Instead, it just drew a smattering of applause, and Rhinotaur realized they weren't taking him seriously. They all thought it was a promotion for some human entertainment franchise, and not serious.

The rhino realized this was an advantage.

As the trio walked up to the crowd, they noticed the creature patting a little boy's head…

And then crushing it.

The crowd screamed and ran as the robots attacked, shooting balls of energy out of their Nasty Sticks. "DESTROY THEM, SUITROOPS!" the Rhinotaur roared. The 'Suitroops' fanned out, driving the crowd away from them, as the herd of humans ran away to safety, except for the star trio.

A number of these Suitroops rushed up to the trio, at which point they attacked, forcing them to fight back.

"YAAAA!" Sean gave a swift reverse roundhouse kick to a Suitroop's head. With a swift turn, Sean gave another Suitroop a side-kick, sending it flying back into another group of Suitroops. But then he felt as though the wind had been knocked out of him. A Suitroop had kicked him in the gut and caught him off guard. Sean doubled over in pain, but he recovered fast enough to block a punch by another Suitroop and then punched it in its gut. The robot doubled over and Sean finished the job with an elbow to its back. But the Suitroops had a massive numerical advantage, which he hadn't dealt with before.

Kevin punched his Suitroop opponent right in its gut, possibly doing some damage internally. Another Suitroop came at Kevin, but he ducked and the Suitroop missed him, but hit the Suitroop Kevin had just punched in the head. But Kevin's right arm was grabbed by another Suitroop and wouldn't let go. Kevin kicked the 'bot and knocked it away, but another grabbed his left. The Suitroops ganged up on Kevin and kicked him in the gut, knocking his breath out.

The Suitroop swung its staff at Maria, but she ducked and rolled underneath the robot's arm. With a sweep kick, she knocked the robot on its back. Then she blocked another Suitroop's attack, but a second Suitroop kicked her in the back. Maria screamed in pain at the robot's attack and feel forward. A Suitroop raised its sword above its head, preparing to strike, but Maria rolled out of the way, got up and kicked the sword out of the Suitroop's hand before it could strike. She spun around and kicked the same 'bot again, knocking it to the ground. But a Suitroop tripped her up and she fell to the ground.

A Suitroop knocked Sean off his feet and the next thing he knew he had a face full of asphalt. He growled in frustration as the Suitroops closed in. Kevin was kicked from behind. The Suitroops were too many for Sean to take on. Now all the members of the group were lying on the ground in defeat and the Suitroops were leaving the scene. Worst of all, Rhinotaur was taunting them. "Is that the best you filthy humans can do? HA! You're pathetic!"

Daisuke watched on a CCTV feed, shaking his head at the scene. There was one thing to do, but they were reluctant to do it. Still, they needed to be reminded.

"Jun!" he said. "Send them their devices."

"Yes, sir," she replied, pressing some buttons on her computer console.

At the scene, something materialized on Sean and Kevin's left wrists. It was the transformation device that Miyazawa wanted them to take. Watching this, Maria pulled her device out.

" _Listen_ ," Miyazawa said from the devices. " _I apologize if you did not believe me earlier. But as you can see, you NEED to use the Power Suits! PLEASE believe me!_ "

"You got a fuckin' MANUAL!?" Sean screamed as he got up on his elbows.

" _I apologize for that as well_ ," said Miyazawa. " _The device is voice and touch-activated. Shout the words 'Power Suit, activate' and press the red 'activate' button. The rest is up to you._ "

Sean looked up at the others. Rhinotaur and the Suitroops were busy attacking and causing mayhem in the background, sending throngs of people running for their lives. All three looked at each other, conversing silently.

"Fuck this," Sean said as he stood up.

"Are you really going to do this?" Kevin asked.

"You got any better ideas?"

"I don't know," said Maria.

"Well I'm taking my chances! So GET THE FUCK UP  _ **NOW**_!" With Sean's 'encouragement', the other two got up off the ground and gathered around Sean, from left to right, Maria, Sean and Kevin. "Hey you! Hey ugly!" Sean said to the monster.

The monster turned around and said, "Coming back for more?"

"That was just the first period!" Sean replied. "Second period's about to start!" Sean showed the monster the bracelet on his left wrist. "READY!?"

" _READY!"_ In unison, the group yelled at the top of their lungs, " _POWER SUIT, ACTIVATE!"_

_To be continued..._


	3. Take-Off, Part 3

"That was just the first period!" Sean replied. "Second period's about to start!" Sean showed the monster the bracelet on his left wrist. "READY!?"

" _READY!"_ In unison, the group yelled at the top of their lungs, " _POWER SUIT, ACTIVATE!"_ The group pressed the button on the bracelets, and the area was filled with a blinding light. Rhinotaur was forced to look away from the scene, and so were the crowds of people that were still around. When Rhinotaur looked again, something was different.

"I don't feel different," said Sean. He felt the same, so what happened? Had he been cheated? But then he looked at his hands. "WOAH!" He said. He was wearing... something! In fact, everyone was wearing it! The suits seemed to be color-coded: Yellow, Red and Blue.

" _Behold_ ," said Miyazawa. " _The Miyazawa Industries Powered Combat Suit._ "

They wore the same designs they'd made at the Miyazawa office. Sean wore a version of the Chicago Blackhawks' home red, black and white uniforms as a superhero suit, save for a black hawk's head covering the chest and a shirttail about the length of a t-shirt, and looking like Captain America's costume from  _The Avengers_ movie, save for the helmet, which was black, had an equally black visor and a grey mouth plate.

Kevin's was much simpler, a blue-and-white combination, like a Power Ranger, and a block 'B' the only thing indicating who he was. And he too, had the same dark visor covering his eyes and a grey metal mouth plate to go with his blue helmet.

Maria wore her Brazilian soccer team-inspired suit, with a yellow top, green piping, a blue skirt and white knee-high boots. The head of a canary was plastered on her chest.

"WOW!" Sean said. "I've never felt this incredible my whole life!" The feeling was almost like going on 10 roller coasters at once, it felt so good.

" _This should be normal_ ," said Miyazawa. " _The first time you activate the suit, you should feel a sense of euphoria_."

"I love this!" Kevin said, balling his fists. "I'm ready to kick some arse!"

" _¡Muy, muy bueno!"_ Maria said. " _¡Me encanta esta sensación!"_

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU!?" Rhinotaur bellowed. It seemed that even the Suitroops were confused as well, as they looked around at each other.

"What, you've never heard of superheroes before!?" Sean replied. "Well, guess what!? You're about to get a fucking primer!"

"So what are our names?" Kevin asked.

"Uhhhh…" Crap. Sean probably should've thought of that. But it's not every day you get called in to test a superhero suit, leave and then just minutes later find yourself in the middle of a big fight to save the city. He can be forgiven for not knowing what the hell to do in this situation. "I'm, uh… BLACKHAWK!"

"BLACKHAWK!?" Kevin gasped. "Is that the best you could do!?"

"Can you do any better!?"

"Soldier Blue!" Kevin replied.

"Oh, come ON!"

"And I'm Canaria!" Maria added.

"Look, you have NO place to say I'm being unoriginal when—"

" _OY! Hombres!"_  Maria interrupted. "What about  _THEM_?"

"Oh, right!" Sean said, turning back towards to the Rhinotaur, who was standing across from them with what could be considered a confused expression. "You're going  _DOWN_ , ugly!"

Rhinotaur seemed to take a minute to think before laughing out loud, annoying the three superheroes. "Is this supposed to be a joke?" he asked. "Get rid of them Suitroops!" The Suitroops raised their Nasty Sticks at them and charged forward.

"LET'S KICK THEIR FUCKING ASSES!" Sean yelled, pointing at the Suitroops and getting his fellow superheroes to charge them until both sides met in the middle.

Sean delivered a roundhouse kick to an oncoming Suitroop. The kick knocked the bot's head clean off. Then Sean kicked a Suitroop behind him without his foot touching the ground. The Suitroops closed in around Sean, but he wound up his leg and reverse roundhouse kicked the lot of them very hard.. The Suitroops exploded in a spectacular display of sparks. Another Suitroop came at Sean, but he flipped over the robot and shot it literally in the back with his Octane Blaster. In midair, Sean pulled a Matrix-like stunt and kicked three Suitroops in midair. When he landed, a Suitroop came at him, but Sean held out his arm and clotheslined the Suitroop, knocking it on its back. Another Suitroop came at him and this one he gave reverse roundhouse kick, the robot fell to the ground in a twitching mess right there. Then Sean turned and blocked an incoming Suitroop staff, then punched the Suitroop in the chest, knocking it back. "This thing is fuckin' awesome!" he said before going back to beating more Suitroops.

An incoming Suitroop brought its staff down on Kevin, but he spun around and then kicked the Suitroop in the back. He then grabbed an incoming punch from a Suitroop and flipped the bot on its back and then stomped on the robot's chest. But Kevin suddenly felt himself falling backwards as though a rug had been swept out from under him. Turns out a Suitroop and managed to knock him off his feet with a sweep kick. But Kevin quickly managed to recover as soon as he hit the ground and punched the Suitroop he thought was responsible for the sweep kick. The robot flew backwards and struck three other Suitroops, knocking them off their feet. Kevin blocked an incoming Suitroop punch, and then kicked it too. A Suitroop rushed in at Kevin, but he leaped and flipped over the 'Bot and kicked over another group of them after he got the right spot. Then he tornado-kicked three Suitroops and side kicked another. "I love this!" he said. "This is better than a cup of tea!"

With two Suitroops coming at her and three behind, Maria backflipped behind the Suitroops, catching the both of them off guard. The Suitroops looked for Maria before she kicked them both, knocking their heads off. Two more Suitroops charged Maria, but she made a spin move and dodged the incoming Suitroops. One tried to kick her, but she blocked the kick with her own leg, then reverse roundhouse kicking the same robot onto its back. Then in rapid-fire succession, kick, punch, kick, butterfly kick, chop. Five Suitroops went down like flies. A Suitroop's punch came for her, but she dodged the punch and just as quickly kicked the Suitroop in its chest. Two Suitroops brought their short swords down on her, but she blocked both swords with her left arm. From there, she kicked both robots and then spun around to counter an incoming Suitroop attack, which she easily blocked and countered with a powerful punch. "This is incredible!" she said. "I love it!"

Rhinotaur was stunned, to say the least. These humans, who were fighting amongst each other just minutes ago, had wiped the floor with the Suitroops! He barely noticed the three gathering in front of him until he heard their footsteps.

"HEY UGLY!" Rhinotaur turned around to see that the three superheroes had him surrounded. "We beat your ugly robots, now we're coming for YOU!"

As if Rhinotaur was intimidated. "HAHAHAHA!" he laughed. "Is this some kind of JOKE?"

"SHADDUP!" Sean snapped. He lunged at the Rhinotaur, throwing his fist at the beast. Rhinotaur caught his right fist and then his left fist all while Kevin and Maria groaned.

"I was afraid of this," Kevin sighed.

" _BASTARDO!_ " Maria snapped. "I'll show him!"

"And I was afraid of that, too," Kevin sighed while Maria lunged at Rhinotaur, jumped and clubbed him on the head with both of her fists, a blow that sent the monster staggering away. It allowed Sean to kick the monster in the jaw.

Sean's cackling enraged the Rhinotaur. And that was before Kevin tackled him to bring him to a hard THUD to the pavement. Streets & Sanitation already have trouble with the potholes in winter, but the crack in the street made by the massive cyborg monster would make any Joe or Jose wish they'd found a better career path than fixing the street.

As the trio surrounded him again, Rhinotaur angrily clutched the street, pulling more bits of asphalt out of the ground. Instead of sitting there angsting though, Rhinotaur got up and pointed his arm at the trio. Some rockets popped out of his arm, aimed right at them. They had a split second to jump out of the way as Rhinotaur fired his missiles at them. Those missiles struck a nearby intersection, blowing it up and throwing dirt and rubble all over the place, damaging buildings and cars that had gotten caught in the mayhem.

"Oh, crap," said Sean. "Okay, um, let's surround him again!"

"Again!?" Kevin laughed. "And here I thought I was talking to a great leader! Come on, I've seen you do better in hockey, is this the best you can do!?"

"Is he always this bad?" Maria asked.

"No!" Sean replied.

"In a way, yes," Kevin said.

"HEY!" Rhinotaur called. "In case you didn't know, talking isn't a free action!" He fired more arm-missiles at them, scattering them about.

Sean ran around the perimeter as he tried to escape. Once he got to a spot out of the monster's eyesight, he ran up and punched him in the back of the head, right as Kevin jumped up and kneed him directly in the snout. And to finish it off, Maria jumped on the monster's shoulders. Well, she slipped, but she kept her hands on his horn, which from the sounds of his bellowing, was pretty painful. But she punched the side of his head, although that caused him to fling her forward and for Sean to run and catch her before she hit something—namely, the Art Institute's lions.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Thanks," she said begrudgingly. "But don't think this makes it okay to date me."

He responded by gently dropping her on her backside while holding his hands up in a surrender gesture. "As you wish," he said.

"I didn't mean to drop me," she grumbled.

"A LITTLE HELP, HERE!?" Kevin called impatiently.

"Oh, right!" Sean remembered. He, along with Maria, ran back to back Kevin up as the Soldier Blue grappled with Rhinotaur, trying to hold off the cyborg's horn. Sean leapt into the air and punched the beast on the snout, and then Maria kicked him in the chest.

The shock and surprise were obvious upon Rhinotaur's face. Here they were, three humans dressed in ridiculous costumes, making a mockery of him. HE WASN'T GOING TO STAND FOR IT! He stamped on the pavement and charged the trio, who stood their ground. Just what he wanted! He lowered his head and bowled into the three and kept going while stomping on Sean and Maria. Kevin got back up and grabbed his legs, which made the large rhino collapse on the pavement.

Sean and Maria, who felt like mashed potatoes got back up, despite the obvious aches and pains. But their respective HUDs flashed that there was no major injury to either one.

"Ah, this is harder than I thought," Sean groaned.

"Are you surprised?" Maria quipped.

"Not really," he said. "Now GET UP!"

She did. And so did he. And in that moment, Rhinotaur charged at them again. Sean and Maria braced themselves and caught Rhinotaur. They successfully stopped him, and like he was a bull, they tossed him to the side. They ran up to him. Sean threw a right hook a followed up with a crescent kick, both of which hit the Rhintotaur and left him up to Maria. The Canaria leapt onto the cyborg's shoulder, whereupon she grabbed the horn and tried to blind the beast. Sean and Kevin ran up to the monster and kicked it right in the chest, sending him sprawling on the ground. Maria jumped off Rhinotaur's shoulder before he hit the ground.

"Ah, this is going nowhere," Sean groaned. "Usually, there's a finisher the superheroes use, but we don't have one!"

" _One moment_ ," Miyazawa declared over their in-helmet radio. A second later, pistol-shaped objects…that actually turned out to BE pistols, materialized in their hands. "Use the scan mode to find a weakness."

"Oh, so we've gotta shoot the bastard," Sean said to himself. "Got it!" Sean said. "Scan!" Sean examined Rhinotaur's body, looking for any abnormalities that might be a weakness. It seemed to be fruitless, until-"Wait, I've got one!" He said. "There's some circuitry that's been exposed. I'm not sure, but if we concentrate our fire on it, it might destroy him."

"Are you sure about that?" Kevin asked. "What if you're wrong?"

"We won't know unless we try," said Sean. The group lined up in front of Rhinotaur.

"Back for more?" He taunted. Sean stayed calm.

"Blasters, ready!"

" _Ready!_ " The Rangers pointed their blasters at Rhinotaur.

"You think your puny firearms can stop me?" Rhinotaur taunted. "Go ahead, make my day!"

"Aim! FIRE!" The trio fired their Blasters at Rhinotaur, striking him in the spot that Sean identified using his scan. Sparks flew from the spot, apparently confirming the hypothesis that it was Rhinotaur's weak spot. The cyborg screamed as the blasters hit their mark. When they were done, the Rangers turned around and put their blasters in the holsters. Behind them, Rhinotaur fell to the ground, his body crackling with sparks, an unstable piece of machinery. When he hit the ground, he exploded in a spectacular display of pyrotechnics. As this happened, the trio posed in confident victory.

The crowd that watched them let them know of their appreciation of the trio's service, giving the group a round of applause and cheers. It didn't quite register with the trio what had just happened until they heard the cheering and applause, and it made them blush under their masks. But the oncoming sirens of Chicago Police cruisers ripped them back into reality. And they didn't want to stick around for a few more minutes. So they took off to power down in an alley.

They emerged from the alley and left for Monroe before the cops arrived.

One of the cops who emerged to find the smoldering remains of a cyborg rubbed his head. The name tag… tagged… to his bulletproof vest read "Jackson". This is Rob Jackson. He is Sean's sister's husband.

"Looks like something from one of Sean's TV shows," he said to himself.

:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:

Hitomi sat on her bed reading a packet she got from her RA when she heard some commotion outside her room. Karen looked up from her desk and looked out the door. Someone had their iPhone out and were streaming the news on. This piqued Karen's curiosity, so she got up and walked outside. Hitomi wanted to do the same, but she stayed on her bed, but she did sit up. But Karen dashed back inside their room before she'd even left. She turned on the TV to Channel 9, WGN.

The image showed the helicopter image of a smoldering crater in front of Millennium Park that Chicago Firefighters were pouring water onto. The banner at the bottom of the screen read, "BREAKING NEWS: MONSTER ATTACK, SUPERHEROES (?) DESTROY IT".

"Oh. My. GOD!" Karen exclaimed.

"EEEEEHHH!?" Hitomi did as well.

"… E don't know what really happened," the reporter repeated. "But what we can tell you from eyewitnesses, is that there was some kind of attack right here on Michigan Avenue. Investigators are asking questions, and from what we have learned, it seems to have involved superheroes."

"EEEEH!?" Hitomi cried out again. "Superheroes!?"

"That's what they just said!" Karen replied.

Naturally, Hitomi didn't particularly appreciate Karen's backsass. But someone, who happened to be looking into their room, caught her attention. The girl realized Hitomi was looking at her, and darted away without allowing Hitomi to get a clear view of her face.

And Hitomi didn't know how much her life had changed.

:-:-:-: The Squadron :-:-:-:

A lone sergeant walked through the halls of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. A piece of paper with him, and that was it. He was trying to find where his superior was. There was urgency about the place as the people, mostly military, scurried through the halls. Something had gone down recently. Ahd it was a Saturday. The place should be closed. The sergeant, Sgt. Steven J. Grant, found the room where the man he was looking for was. He was in a meeting with several top officers of the United States Army. "Col. Greene, sir," said the Sergeant, saluting his superior.

"What is it?" The colonel asked. He was an African-American man in his 40s. His face was slender and his eyes showed his worry about the situation at hand. His suit was decorated with lapels, all of them military awards. He did not have his hat on, as he was in a meeting with other top officers.

"Sir, Chicago was attacked a couple minutes ago," Sgt. Grant whispered into Col. Alan Greene's ear. "The perpetrators matched the descriptions of the attackers in Waukegan."

"What happened?" Col. Greene asked.

"Superheroes, sir," said Sgt. Grant.

Col. Greene's head whipped around to face Sgt. Grant. But he was obviously not lying. "Superheroes?"

"Uh, someone said they were like Rangers Powers or something?" Sgt. Grant whispered.

"You mean Power Rangers," said Col. Greene. "My son likes that show. This is serious."

"What should I do, sir?" Sgt. Grant asked.

"Keep monitoring the situation. I suspect this isn't the last we're going to hear from them."

"Yes, sir." Sgt. Grant replied with a salute.

:-:-:-: The Squadron :-:-:-:

"WHAT! They destroyed Rhinotaur?" A figure in the room shouted. "How is it that five insignificant humans were able to destroy one of our best soldiers!"

"I do not know Floki," said another voice; a woman. "What could have happened, Marshall Ingvar?"

"This is madness, Túrelie!" The previously-mentioned Ingvar said. "I want whomever did this to be found and punished. They will—"

"Ingvar!" Another voice came; the leader, apparently.

"My apologies, Commander Ragnar!" Ingvar said.

"Apology accepted, Ingvar," said Commander Ragnar. "This new challenge should be interesting. I believe this may be a test that God put in front of us to challenge our faith."

"I agree!" Floki said. "They'll be fun!"

"As long as God is on our side, I am more than willing," Túrelie said.

"It doesn't matter to me!" Floki said. "Any challenge sounds good!"

"Well then," said Ragnar. "It seems as if God works in mysterious ways."

:-:-:-: The Squadron :-:-:-:

Sean, Maria and Kevin were lucky to find out the Blue Line was still running, even though Monroe was so close to Daley Plaza, their battlefield. But they made it back a haldf hour later than they expected, because the train  _was_  delayed for several minutes until the CPD gave the go-ahead for them to run. But it gave them time to discuss their cover story, namely the obvious question of how they were going to keep the whole going-downtown-on-the-day-it-was-attacked part from rousing suspicion.

"It's not like we expected this," Kevin whispered as the train pulled into the stop near Soldier Field. Sean and Maria nodded their heads in agreement. "But, we have to make it sound like we didn't see a thing. Let's pretend we ran from the scene."

"Not sure if that works for me," said Sean.

"Oh, right," said Kevin. "You'd run right in." Sean didn't take to kindly to that, what with his unhappy expression. "Besides, your story's going to be harder to be believable."

"Do you have to be so insulting?" Sean asked.

"It's just a joke," said Kevin.

"Well, now that I think about it, Metoxen's gonna be hard to convince," said Sean.

"I think I know why," said Kevin.

"I'm worried he's gonna read me like a comic," said Sean.

They didn't have to worry about it for now. They arrived back on campus not half an hour later. They could already feel the buzz about the fight, helped by some dude with his minivan open and playing 870 WLS talking about the incident. Maria stopped to listen, only for Sean to grab a hold of her by the arm and pull her away, while muttering something about who the real narcissist was.

Once they reached the campus, they split up. Sean would return to his apartment. Maria to the International House and Kevin to his apartment.

And when he stepped inside the apartment, Sean found Ritchie rapping his fingers on the table and glancing over at the picture of him as the Blackhawk. "The only person I could think of, who'd do something like that is you," said the Oneida Rocket. "Well?"

"Could've been anyone," said Sean.

"What'd you test?" Ritchie asked.

"Some useless nerd invention," said Sean.

"Says the guy who watches Doctor Who, Star Wars and anime," Ritchie laughed.

"Shaddup," Sean replied. "AJ! Wanna go for a walk, boy?" The dog hopped off the couch to run up and greet his owner while the Oneida Rocket rolled his eyes and muttered something about how he didn't deserve something like this.

Unfortunately for all of them, this was only the beginning.

:-:-:-: The Squadron :-:-:-:

End chapter


End file.
